is it DCS?

[hardyus]

After both of my OW cert dives, 2 dives to 30 feet, then 2 weeks later 2 dives to 30 feet again, on both occasions a few hours later i started feeling this sharp but short joint pain, moving all over my body. For example one of my fingers would hurt, but a few seconds later it would move to my leg or toe, randomly. After a couple of days it would go away completely.

This happend after the other 2 dives also, same depth, but the pain was much milder.

I was wondering is this the symptom of some mild DCS or what is going on?

 

[DocVikingo]

Given dives to no deeper than 30' at typical OW cert bottom times & surface intervals, it is very unlikely that you generated a nitrogen load sufficient to contribute to DCS.

DCS pain can be variable across several parameters. However, very brief duration pain that rapidly moves among widely separated body parts over a period of several days, and occurring on every dive, has not been reported to the best of my knowledge. Additionally, I can't even think of a DCS-related mechanism that could cause this to happen.

Nonetheless, as reported thus far your complaint does appear to be dive-related. It should be discussed with your physician. Either you or your doctor may submit the matter to DAN http://www.diversalertnetwork.org/medical/ for additional guidance.

Perhaps DrDeco will have something more illuminating to say.

Best regards.

DocVikingo

 

[Dr Deco]

Dear hardyus:

Is It Decompression Sickness?

As DocVikingo has mentioned, these pains that jump from place to place on your body do not resemble anything that I have heard of regarding decompression sickness. It is true that after an exposure to increased gas pressure, one should always be suspicious and the corollary to that is to ask if something is amiss.

I would suspect that the problem might lie more in the performance of a new and intense physical activity. As DocVikingo mentioned, the “dose” of nitrogen received in these certification dives is not very much. In addition, the pain arose after a somewhat extended interval after reaching the surface. That would mean that a very small amount of nitrogen was able to remain in your body and after a long duration continue to “feed” nitrogen into a gas nucleus.

All Things are Possible

In my years of research with animals as test subjects, I have seen many rather weird results of decompression. A “dose” of nitrogen that would be certain to produce DCS will result in nothing – even when repeated. Another mild dive will result in the death of the animal. Strange but true. :upset:

I would certainly be on the lookout for a repetition of this event. Laboratory tests in diving with two hundred subjects are enormous by scientific standards. However, considering that tens of thousands are diving on any weekend, the lab trials will pale into insignificance by comparison. It simply is not reasonable to expect that everything will be found first in the laboratory. The diver, begging the gentleman’s pardon, is sometimes the “guinea pig.”

Check with DAN and see what they might have to say.

Dr Deco :doctor: